Going into the Chicago Bearspreseason opener against the Carolina Panthers, I actually had high hopes for the team’s offensive production. I figured and dreamed that in this game, the offense’s opening drive would be a nice healthy and last eight or nine plays resulting in a touchdown. Instead, on the offense’s first series they decided to give the ball back to the Panthers quicker than they received it, typical Bears offense.

So if the Bears offense was typical, i.e., frightful, how did the Bears defense fair minus a retired Brian Urlacher, and a coaches decision to sit All-Pro Julius Peppers? Well, based on all the in-game chatter, plus the good old fashion eyeball test, the Bears defense doesn’t appear to have missed a beat. In typical Bears defensive fashion, players swarmed to the ball, the front-four wrecked havoc on the opposing team’s offensive line and also caused four turnover over the course of the exhibition game.

With turnovers seeming to occur for the Bears defenders as often as a tackle, Bears rookie linebacker, Jon Bostic, got into the takeaway portion of the game by intercepting a Cam Newton forced throw and returning it 51 yards for a touchdown. In his first NFL action, Bostic showcased his elite speed as later in the game the rookie strung out a Carolina run play, forcing the tailback to run straight out of bounds and take a loss. Although early in the preseason, but it appears that Bostic could indeed emerge as a sound replacement for number 54 at the middle linebacker position regardless to if the offense is still a work-in-progress.

Training camp has started and the 2015 season for the Jacksonville Jaguars is officially underway. Besides the obvious players that are expected to shine, we will look at the five Jaguars we believe need to make a significant impact on the field this year if this team is going to be competitive. Read More